An excellent camera loaded with features that you may use...or not.
This is not the first, but the second Canon SX 130 IS I have bought. I love the camera. I normally keep the camera on my belt in a hard camera case so that it would be less likely to get damaged if it fell. However, for a while, I switched to putting the original camera in a small, soft case. This was a mistake because I accidentally must have pushed the "on" button, and, inside the case, the lens had insufficient room to pop out, so this eventually damaged the lens cover mechanism. That's the reason I bought the second camera.
I bought the same model camera as I was very happy with the way it works and generally with the quality of the photos it takes. It's amazing how many different things this camera can do. I only use a small fraction of its capacities and modes, and, for example, I don't even use the video function at all. I started with basic functions that I would have need of, and have learned more "tricks" over time, referring to the instruction manual on the CD provided. So don't be scared by how complicated the camera seems; you needn't learn everything at once, and some things, never.
The camera has 12.1 megapixels and usually produces images that are quite sharp. It has a 12X optical zoom lens (and way beyond that digitally). I find 12x sufficient for me, as beyond that, you probably couldn't hold the camera steady enough to take a good picture without a tripod, and while I carry the camera with me everywhere, I'm not about to lug a tripod, too.
I usually keep the camera in "Program" (P) mode, sometimes switching to "Aperture" (Av) mode, and sometimes employing Macro (MF)for extreme close-ups, and sometimes opening the flash, as needed.
After taking a number of photos, I remove the memory card, stick it into the SD port of my printer (or computer) and use Picasa or other photo enhancement programs to improve contrast, brightness, saturation, etc. if necessary, or for special effects.
I use rechargeable platinum AA batteries which give me many more shots than do the plain alkalines before recharging. But I carry a pair of alkalines with me, also, as back-up.
As I said, I love the Canon PowerShot SX 130 IS.Read full review
